Spiffy wrote:Is f*ggot any worse than cu*t, tw*t, fuc*er, motherfuc*er, coc*sucker, nancy boy, gippo, fatarrse, dickhead, wanker, and a host of other endearments?
Agreed with each of those.
F*gg*t is a homophobic slur and shouldn't be used as an insult (but for meatballs or bits of wood, then fine)
C*nt can be a sexist slur, but is culture dependant, being considered much worse in USA than most English speaking countries. Best avoided when referring to a woman, especially online.
Tw*t same as above, slightly less severe
Fu
cker is fine
Motherfu
cker is fine
C*cks*cker is homophobic, generally less severe than f*ggot, could be considered to be slut shaming.
N*ncy b*y is homophobic, generally less severe than f*ggot
G*pp* is "racist" against the travelling community, who are a protected minority, as we all discovered 2 years ago. I'd suggest that it's a more acceptable "racism" as it's choice rather than nature, but still protected.
Fatarse is sizist, which is frowned upon, generally fine in the context of sport, basically you shouldn't discriminate, but you can insult
Dickhead is fine
Wanker is fine
As for the host of other endearments, the basic rule is that if the word is historically used to demean an historically discriminated group, then don't use it. Hate crimes are bad, random insults are fine.
tigran wrote:He is not homophobic. All in all u lot are making a mountain out of a mouse
Basta may or may not be a homophobe, I have absolutely no idea; that's not massively relevant though as he's not being accused of being a homophobe.
However, he is accused of using a homophobic slur to insult an opponent. We have video and audio of him using a homophobic slur (quite a bad one) and is guilty as sin on that charge. This is illegal in France with penalties going up to €45,000 AND 12 months in jail for verbal abuse.
Digby wrote:Says you. Others will differ
yup, they'd largely be wrong, but they do indeed have the right to be wrong. We can disagree on relative severity, but we can't disagree that f*gg*t is homophobic, or that fu
cker isn't. Of course, that doesn't mean that f*gg*t is always offensive in all contexts; you can still use the term to reference a bundle of sticks, or meatballs; you can still use the terms with a close friends, or within the homosexual community (much like n*gg*r), even then context is all-important and I'd advise caution as it may well trigger someone on the next table. Contextually, I think we can all tell the difference between a term of affection and an insult - though we may choose to obfuscate and excuse, but then, I'm sure there are good people on both side...
Have I jumped into some sort of time-warp? Is it still 2018? Or have I jumped back to 1988 and we're just starting to work this stuff out? Or have I missed a massive aluminiumy plane?